Today, December 31, 2025, I mark 11 years of this tradition of analyzing Google search trends in Spain. I am a bloody optimist. This analysis is proof of that optimism; otherwise, I would have lost faith in humanity a long time ago. In fact, this year, the folks at Microsiervos came to that conclusion.
To keep the tradition alive, you can review these analyses and human digressions year after year, from 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024.
With slight changes, as every year, Google shows us the information split into different rankings. We will stop at a few, but grosso modo, there are 7 categories:
- News
- Who is…?
- How did you…?
- Why…?
- What does … mean?
- Films and series
- What is better…?
News
Of course, the Spain blackout takes first place. I am not surprised.
The rains, fires, the new pope and, curiously, the monarch butterfly migration, which jumped into the trends because it marked 50 years since the discovery of the hibernation sanctuaries. I did not know about it—very interesting.
After 5th place, figures like lalachus (actress), labubu (collectible plush dolls), the Premio Planeta, Gaza Flotilla, and the TV show La revuelta make their way in.
Who is…?
In most cases, I did not know the answers. I am not very up to date with current affairs.
I still do not know who Andy is and who Lucas is; by “miracle” (what a great word) I do know who the hell the new Pope is, and for the rest I had to waste time looking up who the hell Lalachus is, Topuria (a martial artist from Georgia), Salva Reina (actor who won a Goya for Best Supporting Actor).
And the rest of the list: Abby, Karla Sofía Gascón, Montoya, Rosalía and Alcaraz.
Few surprises—everything as always, closely tied to current news related to the personalities of the year.
How did you…?
This, as always, is one of my funniest and most interesting categories. The one that truly sheds light on the quality of searches and people.
How to take photos with AI? Wonderful. Seriously, I think we deserve for AI to take over the planet.
One of the biggest concerns among the population, regarding a technology that is changing the internet and the world as we know it, is how the hell to take photos with it.
If we have not gone extinct, it is a bloody miracle.
But the second one has blown my mind in unimaginable ways. As much as the year we were searching for “how to be happy and not have gas.”
Pay attention to the question, eh? How to poop at work?
Are you kidding me? What the hell happened for this question to make it onto this list?
Looking into it—because my disbelief was off the charts—I realized there is everything from viral videos to books. If we are not millionaires, it is because we do not bloody want to!
“Remove makeup from the pillow” is not far behind either. It is one of those questions that makes me think: how did it not occur to me before?
Between pooping and removing makeup, existential doubts get pushed into the background.
And mind you, these are Google searches… What would it be like if we had search stats from ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or any of the most-used AIs?
For firefighters, this question would scare me a lot: “How to make fire with two sticks?”
I imagine this was encouraged by the Spain blackout. All we needed was, on top of losing power, to start fires like mad because we could not be patient and wait for the electricity to come back.
The rest of the queries fall within a more acceptable “normality”:
- How to make homemade crêpes?
- How to make chickpea stew with cod and spinach?
- How to make Crumbl cookies? (cookies that became trendy in the United States)
- How to make matcha tea?
- Make homemade yogurt
- How to make Dubai chocolate?
For all these searches, I admit Google is great. It gives you the recipe—especially with AI Overviews—while taking clicks away from many recipe sites, but we should thank them for the detail of answering our query properly.
At least we eat well. 😉
Why…?
We have to get to the root of things. Inquiry is part of our nature, and of course, the power and why it went out is the most searched query this 2025.
The rest of the positions are reasonable too, always linked to current news and geopolitics.
Why does Israel attack Iran? Why do popes change their names? Why is the April Fair in May? Why have eggs gone up so much?
The rest of the searches are still interesting:
- Why is there no light in space?
- Why is Trump raising tariffs?
- Why is my stomach rumbling?
- Why is the watermelon the symbol of Palestine?
- Why are yawns contagious?
I want to be ironic about yawns, or about why my stomach is rumbling, but I cannot get the question about pooping at the office out of my head. How simple I am!
What does … mean?
Searching for meanings is a good analogy for the human journey on planet Earth.
For that reason, knowing what ageism, queer, pH, DANA and woke are—terms that, for one reason or another, are invading our jargon. Language is a living thing.
For the most curious, I will clarify each of these terms with quick definitions, which, for obvious reasons, I did not fully have under control either:
- Ageism = discrimination, stereotypes and prejudice against a person because of their age
- Queer = From English, a term used to describe different gender identities
- pH = I have no idea why the hell this term was searched for this year. Potential of hydrogen, a scale that measures the acidity or alkalinity of an aqueous solution.
- DANA = Cold drop. Isolated high-level depression. Remember that last year, as is normal, DANA dominated the news in Spain.
- Woke = From English, awake. It means being alert and aware of social injustices. It originated in the African American community and its vigilant stance against racism.
- The rest of the terms on the list: Berghain, bare ownership, FOMO, PEC and mirror hour.
I have no bloody idea what this might say about our environment and society.
I understand the need to keep up with current affairs and the new terms that arise from new social situations and identities.
Films and series
Nothing to object to or mention. I will leave the list here out of curiosity. Sirat blew my mind—one of the best films I have seen in a long time:
What is better?
These comparisons always make me laugh. Which is better, diesel or petrol? Gemini or ChatGPT? Butter or margarine?
The best cure for a hangover? I will tell you: do not drink.
Joint or individual tax return? Reduce the term or the instalment? Car ownership or leasing? Breakfast before or after training? Retinol or retinal? Is creatine or protein better?
The rest of the questions do not matter… the whole pooping-at-the-office topic takes the Globe, the Oscar, the Palme, Cannes, and any other award.
It must be because I am self-employed and do not have to face that dilemma. Either way, I poop wherever I have to; my arse is not shy.
Final thoughts
I always write this post with that ironic tone that human inconsistencies evoke. But as I mentioned at the beginning of the article, I still have faith in humanity.
Google, as always, keeps taking clicks away from websites, even though it uses the source of our content, and gives us a motivational video—very typical of North American culture—evoking hope and faith. It is nice, but I always recommend watching it with a critical eye.
I believe, as I reflected with my clients and friends, in a video I usually send on December 24, that we live in accelerated times.
Finding focus, calm and mental space is essential for everything we do in this life.
Not long ago I heard a phrase from a Chilean psychologist, Pilar Sordo, that resonated a lot (in her interview for Aprendemos Juntos):
“Acceptance is the great skill of this century, along with what saves us, which is gratitude. So happiness is nothing more than the absence of noise”
Pilar Sordo
For me, year-end is a good time to reflect on what I have achieved so far; I take my “roadmap” in Notion, where I set out my goals and reflections.
I look at what I achieved and what I did not, what I plan for the following year, etc.
It is a wonderful exercise.
I take it as a process of calm—of breathing, of looking with excitement and focus at where I am heading in the following year.
I do not obsess over completing everything; I only make sure my goals are aligned with my values.
If there is that coherence, there is spiritual progress (for me). And above all, do not stop creating—whatever it is we do. Without comparing ourselves, just focused on your growth and your people.
I hope you can be with your family, with the friends you love, and enjoy the serenity of this season, which helps us slow down and simply be with our loved ones. As I always say, nothing else is worth it.
My best wishes for 2026, no matter what nonsense we search for on Google.
I hope you enjoy the end of the year, that you can poop in peace wherever you want and, above all:
Live long and prosper!
